As with any ball oriented sport, the integrity and specifications of the play ball is of utmost importance. A soccer ball must meet several criteria, including durability and shape integrity during play. Unlike many other sports such as football, baseball, and the like, soccer is a continuous action game, where the ball may be in actual play for an extended period of time. Furthermore, in soccer, the ball is often kicked, which can cause a deformation that in turn effects the flight path of the ball. Conventional soccer balls have outer covers which comprise a plurality of hexagonal/pentagonal panels stitched together using Y-shaped butt seams. One butt seam joins three panels; thus, the force on impact is distributed over only three panels at each seam. A conventional soccer ball generally contains sixty butt seams.
While there have been improvements in soccer balls, these generally relate to the materials used, such as improved interior bladders and the like. Furthermore, much effort has been directed toward ball designs and the use of exterior appliques to alter the appearance of the ball. Such changes, of course, have no beneficial effect on the functional aspects of the soccer ball but are simply for appearance.
After studying the problems encountered with the present-day pentagonal/hexagonal paneled soccer ball, we determined that increased control, strength, grip and shape retention capabilities could be realized by developing a soccer ball having a cover comprised of panels stitched together with fewer seams, but having an overall increase in total seam length.
After working with a variety of concepts, we developed a combination hexagonal/star arrangement which would not only utilize fewer and longer seams, but would also join four panels together as opposed to the three panel intersections of the present soccer ball. While all indications led to the belief that this would be an improved soccer ball, initial attempts to stitch the ball with this hexagonal/star arrangement failed, the main problem being stitching the intersection of the four panels.
Nevertheless, since our new hexagonal/star arrangement was also aesthetically pleasing, we developed appliques which allowed us to use our configuration over a traditionally stitched soccer ball. Design patents were filled on this configuration, including U.S. Pat. No. Des. 290,632 the disclosure of which is incorporated by reference into this application.
We continued, however, to work on the stitching of our new soccer ball. At one point, we even posed this stitching problem to a well known soccer-ball manufacturer requesting them to manufacture this ball for us if they could find a solution. Their response after numerous attempts was that stitching such a configuration was impossible.
Shortly thereafter, while working on possible stitching configurations, we questioned a previously accepted requirement. Was it necessary to have stitching through the four panel intersection. This approach led to the development of the present invention.
The soccer ball of the present invention has a cover consisting of alternating star-shaped and hexagonal panels. These panels are held together by cross-seams arranged so that a single cross-seam secures four panels to each other with diagonal bypass stitches crossing over instead of through the four panel intersection. Therefore, the force on impact at a seam is distributed over four panels, rather than three as in the conventional design. In addition, although the number of seams required to make a soccer ball cover has been reduced to thirty, the total seam length over the entire ball cover has been significantly increased. The result is a stronger soccer ball, thereby enabling a player to exhibit greater control.
Advantageously, the stitching pattern also makes the ball less susceptible to distortion. Better shape retention is the result of not only the arrangement of seams, but also the fact that the apexes of adjoining stars are not stitched together. A further advantage of the star/hexagonal stitching patternis about a twenty percent increase in the seam length, thereby providing more gripping indents so that the player is able to maintain a better grip on the ball.
The major advantages of the invention are set forth in part herein and in part will be obvious herefrom, or may be learned by practice with the invention, the same being realized and attained by means of the instrumentalities and combinations pointed out in the appended claims.
The invention consists in the novel parts, constructions, combinations and improvements herein shown andj described.
The accompanying drawings referred to herein and constituting a part hereof illustrate preferred embodiments of the invention and together with the description, serve to explain principles of the invention.